Discussion

A timeline on Food Blogs... according to Saveur

According to a Saveur food blog timeline, the food blogging movement begins with Chowhound - what?

When did CH become a blog?

Given the amount of static food blogging receives, it's surprising to read this in print. Let's give credit where credits due....if credits due. I've been complying my list for a long time, and my journal would be Mike's Flog - (www.glassbird.com/scd/flog.html) as the longest running food blog that I've seen. (97) or this one now archived, http://classic-web.archive.org/web/19...

Interesting, huaqiao. I was reading along back then and I always thought of Jim's site as a bulletin board meant to attract a large chowhoundish community to share chow tips with Jim leading the charge both on and off line. Maybe that amounts to the same thing as what we call a blog today (by many defintions it does) but I'm not at all sure CH in 97 or today began the food blogsphere. The writer of this linked article (in OP) has made that connection.

I think what huaqiao is referring to is that, pre-CNET, Chowhound had both its forums, which you're referring to, and also article content by Jim Leff and guests, that could indeed be likened to or classified as blog entries - such as his paeans to Flint's and Quisp cereal, and regularly updated features like What Jim Had for Dinner, and travelogues with photos. These were a separate feature of the site from the discussion boards.

That's the ticket, Quisp cereal! The CH pre-CNET I read was a site started by Jim and a BB contributed by chowhounds. Very basic format feed. The pages outside of that BB were provided by Jim detailing all his chow travels and encouraging followers.

I realize all the bells and whistles we enjoy visually came later and have continued to expand. Thank you for adding your recall, C.

yes..i dont consider CH a blog...the main CH is what a forum is nowadays...now it can have blogs in it...i dont know about chow from back in the 90s....wasnt on it then..if there was one person making all the posts and we were commenting on them..that would be a blog

i dont remember back to the 90s about specific sites i went to ..except aol back then...and whatever i was looking for at the time...like buying my first digital camera (98 or 99)but i always would look up food..even before that..online or off

so i couldnt say that chowhound started it either..i think anybody blogging then could have......

It is hardly comprehensive and a little weird in ists selections. I'm surprised you didn't point out all the other problems with that article since you seem to be keeping some sort of notes or something.

For whatever reason that interests you, I would not put too much stock in this porrly researched article. Chowhounds claim to fame extends far beyond whether "what Jim had for Dinner" was the first blog or not.

And sheesh, the writer doesn't even seem clear on what a blog is or is not. Just start another topic about what was the first food blog and you'll get better info than that.

While sections of early Chowhound could be considered a blog, egullet was certainly never one.

My own interest when I saw the topic is timelines. On the whole, they are usually unreliable, the only one I have any faith in is the food time line because they document their sources.

That was truly shoddy journalism on the part of Saveur which is supposed to be a professional publication.

Yes there was another thread about this and I mentionned how it bugs me when people mix up blogs and forums. Two diffferent things, sometimes both found at the same website. Seems to me Jim may have had some blog posts but he was always clear that chowhound was a community forum.

According to that Dave Siegel's "Dine with Dave" might take the prize. He logged every lunch he ate starting in 1996. Pretty amusing and truly a trip on the wayback machine as he was based in the SF Bay Area